Traditional rulers, leaders of thought and indigenes of Oke-Ogun area of Oyo State, on Saturday, restated the demand for power shift in the state, insisting that the next governor of the state has to come from Oke-Ogun.
This was as the Oke-Ogun electorate have been charged to reconsider their stance in the dynamics of democracy by rejecting peanuts and small favours to demand tangible and sustainable development.
Making these positions, on Saturday, at the Oke-Ogun Democracy Day 2018, held in Okeho, Oyo State, were the Onjo of Okeho, Oba Rafiu Osuolale; the Aseyin of Iseyin, Oba Abdulganeey Salawu; the National President of Oke-Ogun Development Consultative Forum (ODCF), Dr Zaccheus Ajuwon, and the guest lecturer at the event, Mr Bimpe Aderounmu.
Other dignitaries in attendance included the Aare of Ago Are, Oba Abodunrin Kofoworola; the Onitede of Tede and other traditional rulers from Oke-Ogun; former First Bank MD, Chief Moyo Ajekiigbe; chairman on the occasion, Chief Gbade Adejumo; a governorship aspirant in the state and Editor-in-Chief of the Guardian newspapers, Mr Debo Adesina, among others.
Ajuwon, in a press conference at the event, maintained that nine indigenes of Oke-Ogun had already signified the intention to contest the 2019 governorship election, and that the ODCF “has confidence in their abilities.”
He stated that Oke-Ogun had been treated unfairly in terms of human and infrastructural development, as according to him, neither the federal nor the state government had reckoned with the zone, despite its huge development challenges.
“Our people are resolute and have take a decision to stand and vote as a bloc for our own in 2019. We are determined, ready and motivated to pursue peace in the gubernatorial election in 2019,” Ajuwon said.
In his lecture on Oke-Ogun Electorate in the Dynamics of Democracy, Aderounmu charged the electorate not to fall for pittance and deception to remain committed party members, while their region continued to be sidelined on positions and development.
In their separate remarks, the Onjo of Okeho and the Aseyin of Iseyin, who assured of royal backing for power rotation to Oke-Ogun in 2019, called for unity of purpose and sincerity.